Suicide Prevention and Mental Health

The article discusses the characters underlying the documentary ‘Cross Lake: This is where I Live’ and the strategies to be considered for suicide prevention. It also highlights the importance of culturally competent treatment and respect towards unique cultural practices while helping with suicide rates in diverse communities.

Running head: SUICIDE PREVENTION AND MENTAL HEALTH
SUICIDE PREVENTION AND MENTAL HEALTH
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The following paragraphs demonstrate a comprehensive understanding of the characters
underlying the documentary ‘Cross Lake: This is where I Live’ and the strategies to be
considered for suicide prevention.
Upon viewing the documentary ‘Cross Lake: This is Where I Live’, the young person
who stood out most for me was 17 year Christian Bailey, a social and jovial youngster who has
been successfully hiding his pain and trauma beneath his cheerful attitude and casual smile (CBC
News, 2019). Christian stood out in terms of being possession of an alcoholic family, that is, a
family history of substance abuse disorder – an essential risk factor underlying suicidal
intentions (Ribeiro et al., 2016). Additional pre-determining factors for suicide in Christian
include his childhood experiences of familial sexual abuse and cultural discrimination where he
and many other indigenous citizens of cross lake, suffered a history of abuse, resettlement,
resource deprivation and false promises from the government (Du Roscoät et al., 2016).
However, Christian could be seen administering protective factors of possessing high sense of
self-esteem and life purpose coupled with engagement in dancing, music and a yearn for
travelling, which help him to cope with suicide contemplation (Consoli et al., 2015). While we
did not observe any mental health diagnosis in Christian, from his narratives, we can diagnose
his family with chronic alcohol abuse disorder. Further, upon close examination, we can observe
that Christian presented symptoms of suicide ideation and suicide contemplation, especially after
the traumatic life event of sexual abuse from his family’s friends.
It can be observed one of the key contributing factors underlying high suicide rates in
Cross Lake is the reception of a culturally incompetent treatment over the years. A sense of a
loss of culture and trauma associated with historical incidents are a key risk factor common in
suicide ideation among culturally diverse populations. It can be observed that the Indigenous

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community at Cross Lake were stripped of their native lands and water resources as well as
unique educational practices with a history of sexual, mental and physical abuse (CBC News,
2019). Hence, surrounding Canadian societies must consider provision of culturally competent
treatment and respect towards unique cultural practices while helping with suicide rates in such
diverse communities (Stack & Kposowa, 2016). It can also be observed that a lack of federal
funding resulted in the absence of adequate maternity and mental healthcare resources in Cross
Lake, which deprives citizens of basic treatment and paves the way as a risk factor for future
susceptibilities of suicides and additional health issues (CBC News, 2019). Hence, the society as
a whole, especially surrounding states must consider provision of financial assistance and
adequate healthcare resources which will help to prevent, manage and educate citizens on suicide
(Idrees, Shah & Wais, 2017). Unemployment is a key risk factor underlying suicide, and
considering Cross Lake’s simultaneously high suicide and unemployment rates, surrounding
societies must consider provision of culturally appropriate employment opportunities for the
affected population (Breuer, 2015).
As a social health worker one of the key intervention strategies which would be useful is
the usage of family centered approaches and family therapy. This is require the health worker to
directly involve the family members of the concerned family to participate in the treatment given
to the patient. Family support and improved familial interpersonal communications have been a
powerful determining factor in suicide prevention, as observed in Christian feeling hopeful after
his family stopped drinking and supported him (Ewing, Diamond & Levy, 2015). Likewise, it
was observed that the youth of Cross Lake relied upon alternative factors as a protective
mechanism and coping strategy against suicide. Hence, the social worker can administer creative
art therapies in the form of art, music, drama and dancing. Such therapies have been found to

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help in suicide coping by allowing individuals to express their emotions and exercise talent
without inhibition (Ramirez, Erlyana & Guilliaum, 2016). Further, the specific therapeutic
intervention which the social worker can administer are psychological treatments of cognitive
behavioral therapy (CBT) and Gestalt therapy. CBT teaches patients to regulate their suicidal
thoughts in response to specific stimuli (Bryan, Peterson & Rudd, 2018). Gestalt therapy relies
extensively in narration to help patients self reflects and recognize their suppressed emotions
(Reeves & Taylor, 2017).
Overall, I found the content of the article highly saddening and painful, because people at
such a young age were exposed to immense psychological and social burdens and
responsibilities. The content of the video also made me anger when I observed the cultural
discrimination and history of deprivation encountered by this Indigenous community coupled
with government’s ignorance of providing basic healthcare, financial and employment resources
which is Canadian’s right (CBC News, 2019). Self care strategies which can be used for coping
with such situations would include adherence to timely schedules of eating a nutritious meal,
sleeping and recreation, along with engaging in talking with a friend, self-reflection, journal
recording, mindfulness and positive thinking (Czyz et al., 2016). Likewise, problem oriented
coping strategies can be used where the individual can research information on the effects of
suicide, risk factors, preventive methods and perform them adequately (Calear et al., 2016).
Hence, to conclude, living with suicide ideation at such a young age results in lack of
psychological and physiological wellbeing in individuals as observed from the documentary.
However, family, personal, financial and social interventions must be considered as effective
coping strategies.

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References
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